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Performance of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version 2.3 (DISC-2.3) in an informal settlement area
B A Robertson1, K Ensink, C D Parry
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Cape Town, South Africa. brian@ray.uct.ac.za
Objective:
To investigate the performance of the Xhosa Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version 2.3 (DISC-2.3) in a community study of African children and adolescents in Khayelitsha, a largely informal settlement area in Cape Town, South Africa.
Method:
A cross-sectional community study of 500 youths aged 6 to 16 years was undertaken using a systematic sampling strategy based on random starting points in the community. Three trained Xhosa-speaking lay interviewers administered the DISC-2.3 to youths and their parents in their homes. Additional questions included degree of impairment, selected risk factors, and service use.
Results:
The administration of the Xhosa DISC-2.3 in an informal settlement area was both feasible and acceptable to respondents. Psychiatric disorder with impairment was recorded for 76 (15.2%) of the children and adolescents. Consultation had been sought in only 20 cases, mostly from medical doctors, except for 3 who had attended indigenous healers. Rates of disorder were significantly higher among respondents who were living in unserviced areas or who came from homes where food was needed.
Conclusions:
The DISC is a potentially useful instrument even in the presence of major constraints on conducting epidemiological research.
